The Borneo Post

More than 120 dead, nearly 600 wounded in Libya fighting

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TRIPOLI: Fighting near Tripoli has killed 121 people and wounded 561 since strongman Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive earlier this month to take the Libyan capital, the World Health Organisati­on said.

WHO’s Libya account said on Twitter the organisati­on was sending medical supplies and more staff to Tripoli, and denounced ‘ repeated attacks on health care workers, vehicles’ during the fighting which erupted on April 4.

Haftar’s forces, which control swathes of the country’s east, have defied internatio­nal calls to halt their battle against fighters loyal to the UN-backed Government of

Three medical personnel have been killed and five ambulances have been incapacita­ted by shrapnel. OCHA statement

National Accord based in Tripoli. The United Nations’ office for humanitari­an affairs said more than 13,500 people had been displaced by the clashes, while more than 900 residents are living in shelters.

“Three medical personnel have been killed and five ambulances have been incapacita­ted by shrapnel,” OCHA said in a statement.

As well as fighting on the ground, the two sides have launched daily air raids and accuse each other of targeting civilians.

The north African country has been in turmoil since the Natobacked overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, which has led to the creation of a bewilderin­g array of militias all seeking to take control.

Haftar backs a rival administra­tion based in eastern Libya that refuses to recognise the UN-backed unity government led by Fayez al- Sarraj. — AFP

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